After almost putting together a valiant fourth-quarter comeback against the Warriors Tuesday night, the Thunder lost a big lead in the final frame Friday night against the Clippers.

When the final buzzer sounded, the scoreboard read 108-92. However, the end result felt a lot closer. The Thunder won the second and third quarters and were up for half of the final frame.

Instead, the offense became stagnant as the Thunder were settling for contested jump shots and not moving the ball efficiently. Head coach Billy Donovan stuck with the same lineup for much of the fourth quarter, mostly starters, and their energy was zapped by the end of the game.

The Clippers put together a 27-5 run to end the game, spearheaded by forward Tobias Harris, who dropped 14 points in the final quarter, while Boban Marjanovic added 10 points in the period.

Los Angeles was led by their two starting forwards with Harris and Danilo Gallinari each recording 26 points apiece in the game as the Clippers outscored the Thunder 37-15 in the final quarter

This was a confusing, spiraling game that was punctuated by huge runs by both teams. The Clippers were up 16-0 to start the game, and by the middle of the second quarter, they had lost that lead.

The Thunder came out on a 9-1 run to start the third to push their lead to as many as nine points. This effort was mostly led by the bench as Alex Abrines and Raymond Felton were knocking down big shots and giving the Clipper defense fits.

Nerlens Noel also showed flashes as he provided a lot of energy defensively and shot 4-of-5 from the field. He was able to use his size effectively over the smaller big in Montrezl Harrell and had his best game in a Thunder uniform thus far.

Paul George had an up-and-down game as he recorded just two points in the first quarter, but then quickly turned it on in the third quarter where he scored 13 of his 20 points.

The final frame was a nightmare for him, though, as he went just 1-of-6 from the field and ultimately fouled out of the game when the Thunder were down 11.

George finished 7-of-27 from the field and 3-of-11 from three, which was an out of sorts game for the wing who doesn’t seem to be clicking as well with Dennis Schroder as he was in the preseason.

What doomed the Thunder was the one-on-one play in the fourth quarter. Instead of running sets and trying to get baskets at the rim for Steven Adams and company, long, contested jump shots were the name of the game and it doomed them.

Schroder was especially guilty of this as he continued to shoot despite going 2-of-15 from the field. He also committed three turnovers, four fouls and was a team-worst minus-18 in the game. Every other starter finished with a negative plus/minus, as well.

A bright spot among the group, however, was the play of Steven Adams who went for 17 points and 18 rebounds on 8-of-11 shooting. He was able to control the paint for most of the game and dominated the glass. For the game, the Thunder grabbed 15 offensive boards and 52 overall, besting the Clippers total by five.

When it comes down to it, the Thunder shot just 36 percent from the field and were gassed in the final frame. This allowed the Clips to stay in it all game and eventually take over when it mattered.

The Thunder drop to 0-2 on the season and it’s safe to say that California is not their favorite state right now after dropping the regular-season opener to the Warriors on Tuesday.

The Thunder return home on Sunday against the Kings.

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